D.C. Diary

Confessions of a Supportive Spouse - Part 1

I did something recently that I need to get off my chest, so here goes: After a year of avoiding such events by claiming work meetings/conference calls/looming essay deadlines/prior engagements, I finally defected to the Dark Side last week and went to my first coffee morning. A serious admission, I know, but it gets worse. Not only did I attend the coffee morning, I was jointly HOSTING it. I even baked some cookies. (Unfortunately they were completely inedible - baking is not my forte - but I did try. How was I to know that a) cookie mixture expanded so much in the oven b) when the recipe says one teaspoon of cake mixture it means one teaspoon and not one tablespoon and c) when the recipe says 'bake for 8 to 10 minutes', it means 8 to 10 minutes and not 15 minutes? I thought cooking was all about creativity, but apparently that doesn't apply to the measurement and timing bit. It has been a long time since Home Ec classes at school, which was the last time I baked anything resembling a cookie - I think we called them biscuits in those days). 

A word of explanation: My dear husband and our friend Olly are attempting to raise $25,000 for a Tanzanian charity by cycling from DC to Africa. They embark upon this little trek next week - on Saturday 2nd May to be precise - and are aiming to cover the 1000 or so miles in 7 days. Fundraising is going well so far, and Olly's wife Nathalie and I are hosting a series of smaller events to support the boys and raise some extra cash in addition to the sponsorship money. Hence the coffee morning/book sale.

The good news is that the book sale raised over $500, so it was definitely 2 hours well spent. The bad news is that our friends and colleagues were so generous with their literary donations that we now have several hundred second hand books on our hands. Which means another book/cake sale event this Friday, this time at the Embassy, where we're hoping we might shift a few of the spy novels and thrillers in addition to all the chick lit and children's books that we sold last week. That's two Fridays in a row. This is a habit I have got to kick. Particularly as there is more baking involved.

Apropos of which, for some reason I have yet to fathom, my friend Lauren has given me a tub of pre-mixed, frozen Gourmet Cookie Dough. Apparently, all I have to do is preheat the oven to 350'C, spoon desired amount of mixture onto baking tray and bake for approximately 10-12 minutes. How hard can that be?

Speak Like Shakespeare Day

My favourite story of the day is definitely this one, which I heard on the radio this morning. In honour of the Bard's 445th birthday, the Mayor of Chicago has declared today to be 'Talk Like Shakespeare Day' and is encouraging his citizens to 'screw their courage to the sticking place and celebrate Shakespeare by the vocal acclamation of his words'. You can read Mayor Daley's Official Proclamation here - I think it's really well done. 

The Windy City has even constructed a website to celebrate the occasion which encourages Chicago-dwellers to 'Blog like Shakespeare' and 'Twitter like Shakespeare'. I was initially rather thrown by this invitation. Does one have to use iambic pentameters? Are rhyming couplets compulsory? But not to fear - the site provides a helpful online Shakespeare Twitter Translator who does the job for you. How does one write 'LOL' in Shakepearean English? 'A chortling ruckus with mine bellyful mirth!' And the response to: 'Please translate: 'I think you are really cute and want to go out with you. What are you doing Saturday?'. 'Thou art a true mirror to a deity. Mayst I have thy digits?' Not bad. Although surely that actually means 'Can I have your fingers?

Anyway, japes galore to be had thanks to Mayor Daley's great idea. I just wonder what he has in store for September 19th.

Porties for Obama

Today Bo Obama becomes the newest member of the First Family, causing much excitement amongst the American media who are clearly delighted to have something else to write about other than the economic crisis, falling retail sales and record unemployment. (And one can see why: I'm not a huge dog lover, but there are some really cute photos of Bo with his new family here).

Bo is a Portuguese Water Dog, a breed named for their ability to 'herd fish into fishermen's nets, retrieve lost tackle or broken nets, and to act as couriers from ship to ship, or ship to shore' - indispensable skills for any White House pet. Six-month-old Bo was given to the Obamas by Senator Ted Kennedy and his wife, who own three 'Porties' themselves. What a relief this must be to the 'Porties for Obama' lobbyists who have been campaigning on behalf of the breed since last November, when Obama announced his intention to appoint a First Dog.

Given the recent furore over presidential etiquette, the poor prospective presidential puppy has been holed up in doggy boot camp ("lessons have been taking place at a secret, undisclosed location outside Washington") for the last few weeks learning the rules of First Dog comportment. According to the Washington Post, it sounds as if he stuck tightly to his protocol briefing when he met the First Family on a trial visit last month. Bo neither inappropriately hugged nor bowed to the President. In addition:

 

" He sat when the girls sat, stood when the girls stood. He made no toileting errors and did not gnaw on the furniture".

 

What a relief that must have been for the poor little chap - the last thing you want to do on your first visit to the White House is poop on the floor. I suspect we might be seeing quite a bit more of little Bo in the next few months - fine with me, just as long as he doesn't appear in any nauseating Christmas videos.

Easter Egg Roll

Easter weekend in the US is too truncated for my liking - neither Good Friday nor Easter Monday are bank holidays, making it just like a normal weekend with a lot of chocolate and church services sandwiched in between. This is a great shame, not least because Easter is my favourite festival and it is always wonderful to have a little extra time to enjoy the Spring sunshine. DC is stunning at this time of year - the cherry blossoms are blooming, the daffodils are dancing and the Tidal Basin tulips are spectacular.

Despite the absence of public holidays, the festivities for kids continue today with the annual Easter Egg Roll at the White House. This is a tradition established in 1814 by Dolley Madison and involves young children rolling eggs down the White House Lawn. The event used to take place on the lawn outside Congress but was declared too messy in 1877 after new turf had been planted. The Roll then moved to the White House, where it was presumably thought perfectly acceptable to have thousands of young children squashing eggs in the front garden. As one might expect, the Obamas have added a new touch to the annual tradition - same-sex couples and their children have been formally invited for the first time, the traditional all-night queues for tickets have been abolished in favour of an online lottery for places and the event is being web-cast for the first time (whoever thought watching Sasha and Malia help the White House chef bake gum drop cookies would be so entertaining?). 

Huffington Post has an entertaining little section on the history of the Easter Egg Roll - including a slideshow of the White House event through the ages. There are some truly classic pics - this one of George Bush and the Easter Bunny is pretty special. But my absolute favourite is the black and white one below, which is posted with the caption "Lost and strayed children with a White House policeman during the Easter egg roll circa 1920". I love the fact that the White House policeman is clearly having such a great time that he doesn't seem the slightest bit bothered about returning the multitude of 'lost and strayed children' to their parents. With 30,000 people expected at the White House for the 2009 Easter Egg Roll, I suspect today's security might be a little tighter...

 

  

14 pounds of pizza

Just back from Colorado. We had a fantastic week skiing in Breckenridge and then spent the weekend with friends in their cosy cabin near Silverthorne. We had a spectacular snow-shoe walk yesterday morning - the surrounding landscape was picture postcard pretty. 

     

We worked up such an appetite on our stroll that our friends Simon and Erin suggested that we stop in at a local pizza eatery on our way back down to Denver. And so we were initiated into the world of Beau Jo's pizza - and their famous 'mountain pies' (which one orders by weight in pounds, not by diameter). And, like any American restaurant worth its salt, this Idaho Springs institution has its very own eating challenge.

THE CHALLENGE, $75.00:

"The Pie...Our Grand Sicilian, 12-14 incredible pounds of our hamburger sausage combo pizza. Our cooks begin with super-thick 16" crust, adding pounds of green peppers, onions, mushrooms, pepperoni, sausage and hamburger. The entire pie is covered in cheese, exquisitely baked, and served to you...Any two people capable of eating this pizza, crust and all in one hour and one sitting, will be given the pie free of charge, awarded a $100.00 cash prize, and 2 free Beau Jo's T-shirts".

Tempting as this offer sounded, one look at The Challenge Wall was enough to see that only a fool would pit oneself against the pie. Of all the plucky challengers pictured on the pinboard, not a single couple had managed to conquer the Challenge pie and the bronze plaques remain empty. So if any of those readers from EatFeats that keep visiting my 84 oz steak challenge blog post, perhaps this is one for you. Just bear in mind that the challenge pie is over 6 times as big as the pizza on the left in the photo below.